5 sales productivity hacks we’ve been loving
They may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised how many people overlook these simple, time-saving productivity hacks.
In a world of distraction, staying focused is more difficult than ever.
Not to say mindless scrolling or long coffee breaks aren’t sometimes necessary, but if you always justify them (and by that we mean every 30 minutes) — the minutes will add up quickly.
Here’s a few changes you can make to your daily routine to see better results instantly.
1. Be SMART with your objectives
In business, we all want to be successful. Because success is subjective depending on the nature of your company, the only way to “be successful” is to create a framework that focuses on continuous improvement.
In other words, it is important to develop a roadmap for the future so that each milestone can be acted upon accordingly to progressively reach the end goal.
When building this roadmap, be SMART with your objectives.
S – Specific
Clearly define the end goal as well as the steps that are necessary to reach it so you can delegate individual tasks to each team or member.
M – Measurable
Use Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) to quantify the results of your efforts so that you can simultaneously gauge the success of your overall plan.
A – Achievable
Implement goals that are challenging, yet attainable in order to create realistic expectations that can be celebrated when they are met.
R – Relevant
Make sure each target is aligned with the organization’s long-term strategy so that everyone is working towards different components of the same plan.
T – Time-Based
Develop a timeline and measure the progression of each objective at specific points to better understand where efforts should be reinforced or relaxed.
By creating SMART objectives, you will not only align your team’s long-term vision, but also hold everyone accountable for their respective short-term goals along the way.
Don’t forget that these objectives can always be adjusted!
2. Manage your workflow
Another of our productivity hacks is that it’s important to develop a structured framework to manage your workflow in order to work efficiently while avoiding burnout.
This framework will vary depending on your team’s dynamic, but here are a few pointers that can be applied to common points of weakness…
- Prioritization: Although you might be inclined to knock-off the lower complexity tasks first, we all know the dangers of procrastination. Start your day off with the most difficult task on your list while your mind is fresh, and alternate between tasks throughout the rest of the day according to their level of priority.
- Organization: Your mind is often a reflection of your workspace. Keep your desk free of clutter and remove yourself from potential distractions whether it be your phone or chatty colleagues. Avoid committing to more than you can handle to retain your sanity – and yes, sometimes that means closing your laptop during your lunch break.
- Time Management: We often fail to acknowledge the time that is lost between switching tasks, taking coffee breaks, or checking your phone and email.
Take note of where time is being wasted and reallocate it to your highest priorities accordingly. Don’t be afraid to block out your schedule or assign time limits for certain tasks to ensure that you stay on track.
These pointers may seem evident, but many times important tasks slip through the cracks as a result of poor prioritization, organization, and time management.
For additional help with productivity hacks, consider implementing management tools to streamline your workflow.
3. Equip yourself with valuable collateral
3/5 productivity hacks: If your sales approach doesn’t utilize collateral just yet, now’s the time.
Marketing and sales collateral work in unison to simultaneously move leads through the sales cycle.
It’s important to equip yourself with resources at every stage of the sales process to move more leads down the funnel, faster.
When it comes down to deciding whether to invest in the product or service that you are offering, highly qualified prospects will want to confirm that your company offers the best solution to their problem.
Leave no room for ambiguity and team up with your marketing department to let your collateral do the talking.
Educational posts, tutorial videos, webinars, testimonials, and case studies are great resources to further educate your audience.
- Educational Posts: The better your prospect is informed, the more likely he or she is to convert after realizing all of the benefits your company has to offer. Whether it be industry news, statistics, or information specific to your product or service, use educational posts as an opportunity to show your prospect why they need you in their life.
- Tutorials: For those that are on the fence about purchasing your product or service, a tutorial might just answer the question that was holding them back.
- Testimonials: Sometimes all it takes is a single sentence to convert your lead into a prospect or your prospect into a customer. When sharing testimonials, we recommend using feedback from your most credible clients as it will inevitably strengthen the reputation of your product or service. Genuinely satisfied customers are usually happy to share their testimonials, because it reinforces the value that you have provided for them while also giving them exposure on your platform.
- Case studies: Diving deeper than a testimonial or review, case studies are a great way to provide concrete evidence about how your product or service has positively influenced the lives of others. Don’t be afraid to show off your success stories!
4. Leverage your CRM’s potential
The number 4 of our list of productivity hacks is leverage your CRM’s potential: Whether your CRM is your best friend or your biggest nightmare, it probably isn’t going away any time soon – so why not take advantage of all that it has to offer? If you’re not sure where to begin, here are a few suggestions:
Organize your pipeline
- Customize the database to fit your specific needs
- Take the time to setup data capturing
- Ensure data hygiene – don’t let it get messy!
- Use filters and labels in your CRM for better data visibility and clarity
Use insights to identify risks and opportunities
- Utilize the insights feature and custom reports in your CRM to better understand your audience and track the status of current deals
- Monitor the health of your pipeline to prevent risks or mistakes that could lead to drop-offs
Collaborate with your team when working on deals
- Enable data visibility protections if and when necessary
Lightly automate your workflow
- Limit automation to administrative tasks such as user journey emails, follow-ups, reminders, and data import
5. Integrate your CRM with useful tools
Now that you’ve gotten your CRM in order internally, you might want to consider external tools that can work as productivity hacks.
Although most of these tools will require a monthly or yearly subscription, the ROI is usually much greater when you consider the time, effort, and stress that could be saved – which is virtually impossible to put a price on.
Take Surfe (ex-Leadjet) for example. The LinkedIn extension synchronizes data, enriches contacts, and allows you to update your CRM directly from the LinkedIn interface. Not only is the tool a huge time-saver, but it also eliminates the possibility of human error when manually inputting data.
Most of these tools can be found in your CRM’s marketplace, so browse around next time you have a chance to see what could be useful for your specific needs.
It can be tempting to use a variety of tools, but be careful not to go overboard.
Using tools to automate repetitive, administrative tasks is feasible, but don’t forget the value of human connection and personalization, especially in the realm of sales.
Bottom line
While some of these productivity hacks are as simple as creating new objectives or rearranging your priorities, others may require downloading a new tool or automating some of your workflow.
No matter which changes you decide to make, don’t forget to periodically check up on your progress to evaluate whether the adjustments are valuable, and try not to overwhelm yourself with too many complicated tools.
Here at Surfe (ex-Leadjet), we are constantly looking for ways to improve our own efficiency, so please don’t hesitate to reach out at [email protected] if you have any other suggestions that we didn’t touch on.
Sign up for your free 14-day trial or book a demo to learn more about what Surfe (ex-Leadjet) has to offer.
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